Class II and III school board size discussed

The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee heard testimony Jan. 31 on a bill that would allow Class II and Class III school districts to adjust the number of members on their respective school boards.

Norfolk Sen. Jim Scheer said he introduced LB726 to provide smaller communities with more local control regarding the size of their school boards. He said the current nine-member boards are a result of merging school districts in the past.

“When the districts started moving together, everyone wanted as many representatives from their previous boards as possible,” he said. “It’s not only much harder to reach consensus, but it’s also harder to find the people to serve in much smaller districts.”

John Bonaiuto, representing the Nebraska Association of School Boards, supported the bill, saying that it’s difficult to find nine people to serve on a board in smaller districts.

“It’s not easy to get that many people to run for the empty seats in these smaller communities,” he said. “Some continue to serve because they really don’t feel comfortable leaving their seats empty.”

No one testified in opposition to the bill and the committee took no immediate action on it.